WE DEPEND ON INFORMATION AND ASSISTANCE FROM THE PUBLIC TO ENHANCE POLICE OPERATIONS IN DEALING WITH CRIME - CHIEF INSPECTOR

The Jaman South Municipal, National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) office in a proactive move towards ensuring peaceful elections and post-election stability, held an inter-party dialogue meeting with various stakeholders to discuss strategies for promoting peaceful co-existence and preventing and containing Violent Extremism. The meeting, held at the Ascension Presbyterian church, Japekrom brought together representatives from, political parties, law enforcement, faith-based organisations, civil society organizations, community leaders, women and youth groups.

Mr. Emmanuel Oduro, the NCCE Jaman South Municipal Director welcomed the participants, stating that the campaign was being undertaken by with support from the European Union.

Emphasizing on the theme “Together we can build Ghana, so get involved”, he urged members to be law abiding citizens and not participate in any form of activities that may destabilize the peace enjoyed by the country. Ahead of the general elections in December, he advised the various political parties present to be tolerant of the views of opposing groups and carry out their activities with respect to the law of the land.

Chief Inspector Mark Kwabena Okyere, a station officer at the Jaman South Police Headquarters discussed three (3) major focus areas including monitoring and reporting threats and vulnerabilities of Violent Extremism, ways to detect youth radicalisation and signs of recruitment, mediation and resolution of local conflicts. He emphasized the important role citizens can play in security matters. “We depend on information and assistance from the public to enhance police operations in dealing with crime”.

Chief Inspector Okyere advised citizens to see security as a collective responsibility which demands them to be vigilant and security conscious at all times and report any suspicious activities to the various security agencies.

Dr. Henrietta Asante-Sarpong, NCCE’s Director of Research, Gender and Equality added that civic education is a shared responsibility and therefore appealed to the leaders of the various groups to compliment the efforts of the NCCE by educating their members on their duties and responsibilities as citizens of Ghana.

With a renewed sense of purpose and determination, the participants were united in their resolve to promote peace, tolerance and also help in the fight against Violent Extremism, thereby laying the foundation for a peaceful electoral process.